A movie that shows audiences an Egypt they have not seen before
Egypt is a land that has been in Hollywood movies many times and in tons of different ways. There have been films about a deadly mummy done in a number of different versions with actors who have portrayed this threat in exciting ways. People have also been taken to this exotic land a few times thanks to the adventurer Indiana Jones and have seen all kinds of amazing treasures and things that will chill you to the bone. Yet it has not been seen yet in a way where human and Gods happen to live together until now. Gods of Egypt plans on taking audiences to a new version of this locale and here is what this writer thought of it.
The movie begins with a happy occasion where Osiris the former king of Egypt and powerful god is going to crown a new ruler. He has chosen his successor to be his son Horus ( Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and the everyone in the land has come from far and wide to pay him tribute and celebrate this joyous day. The day takes a dark turn though when Set (Gerard Butler) shows up and kills his brother Osiris and defeats Horus in combat and takes away the very thing that makes him a god and leaves him unfit to rule. Therefore Set decides to be the new ruler and he quickly brings the land into ruin and chaos.
A mortal named Bek (Brenton Thwaites) and his wife Zaya (Courtney Eaton) no longer live together and life has not gone the way they planned. Bek comes up with a crazy plan though, if he can steal back the thing Set took from Horus maybe he can help him beat Set and bring Egypt back to its former glory. Somehow he is able to obtain this item and even finds a way to return it to Horus but sadly he isn’t exactly grateful for what this lowly mortal has done. With Horus’ sight partially returned they decide to join forces to stop Set but this sure won’t be a simple task. There will be plenty of monsters and dangers along the way but they both refuse to give up. What is Set’s plan? How does he hope to complete it? Why does he hunger for power so much? And will these two unlikely allies be able to stop his plans in time?
This writer was not impressed when he saw the trailer but has to say Gods of Egypt was not that bad. It is full of CGI which was not always necessary but it did help make a few scenes pretty visually stimulating. Set is a rather ridiculous villain and no matter what he does it is not too hard to see what his fate is going to be in the end. The only really good thing about this movie was the dynamic between Bek and Horus. These two characters begin with strong hated but as the quest moves on they not only find a way to tolerate each other but amazingly even begin to like each other. These actors were a good fit and played off of each other rather well. They were able to balance comedy and action in a way that felt real and really helps move the story along. When things got tough or appeared hopeless these two guys were always willing to try to find a way to make things right. The ending was a bit predictable but still was kinda cool to see how everything worked out. The film brings some pretty good fight scenes and a few interesting monsters as well. Overall not a horrible movie but not something everyone will enjoy either.
Gods of Egypt gets 6/10. Although the movie has its flaws it did have some things that impressed this writer. Some of the characters have real depth and many layers that make them interesting and will have some viewers hoping everything works out for them. There is also some growth here for a few of the characters and it was a pleasure to see them be stronger and better once all of their trials in this film have ended. Sadly Gerard Butler was not that great in this movie, the character he plays is pretty one dimensional and therefore not that interesting nor does it stretch him much as an actor. The movie was better than this writer expected and did surprise him a few times but sadly not enough to make this a really great film.
If you enjoy movies full of creatures and fantasy then you should see this film. If you are a fan of ancient Egypt this is a movie you may want to see. Yet if you are not a fan of a ton of CGI this won’t be the picture for you. Gods of Egypt comes out today.
Watch the action packed trailer here: